On Monday, the El Paso Chamber’s 2020 Leadership El Paso Class (LEP 42) presented check to Operation H.O.P.E. as a part of their ’42 and You’ project.

Members of LEP 42, along with community sponsors, raised $46,250 for the nonprofit organization Operation H.O.P.E in order to meet the El Paso community’s food needs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are very grateful to all the donors that came together to support LEP 42, Operation H.O.P.E, and our local blood bank,” LEP Project Co-Chairs Dana Irwin Carmona and Nicole Mier shared in a joint statement.

“We named this project ‘42 and YOU’ because we needed ‘you,’ the El Paso community, to join us in making a difference, and we demonstrated once again how united we are, even in difficult times.”

The funds that have been raised will allow Operation H.O.P.E to continue helping El Paso families with their food needs, and the project will culminate in a food drive to take place in November 14, 2020 where LEP 42 members will be participating.

The “42 and YOU” project which began in June of this year, saw over 80 individual donations and a great outpouring of support from the community. In addition to the funds that were raised, LEP 42 held three blood drives which garnered donations of over 35 units of blood for our healthcare needs.

The El Paso Electric Company, Chase Bank, GECU, Marathon Petroleum and TFCU were the biggest sponsors of these efforts, allowing LEP 42 to surpass the original goal of raising $42,000 during this campaign.